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Gadkari promises 8-hr travel between Delhi and Srinagar by 2023

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Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways, Nitin Gadkari has promised to reduce the travel time by car between New Delhi and Srinagar from 24 hours to just 8 hours, while the drive between Jammu and Srinagar in December 2023 would be of an incredible four hours.

Addressing a public meeting at Doda after laying foundation stone for 25 surface communication projects, with aggregate length of 259 km worth Rs 11,721 crore and announcing five new highways in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir, Gadkari on Wednesday said the construction of the four-lane national highway (NH-44) from Jammu to Srinagar would be completed in the next 24 months.

After completion of the ongoing road projects, the Union Minister added that Jammu and Srinagar would get three road corridors that are currently in different stages of execution. “Srinagar-Jammu national highway (NH-44) will be completed within two years and the travel journey will be reduced to just four hours,” he said. This would mean a total driving time of eight hours from Delhi to Srinagar.

Significantly, in his first meeting with the Jammu and Kashmir politicians in over two years on June 24, 2021, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had emphasised on reducing Kashmir’s distance from Delhi-Dil ki duri aur Dilli ki duri. Gadkari’s ambitious project alongside green-lighting the rail linkage between Srinagar and Delhi in the next two years would be a veritable game changer in the process of Kashmir’s physical integration with the rest of India.

The Union Minister added that the second road corridor between Jammu and Srinagar through Doda-Kishtwar (NH-244) and the third one through Akhnoor-Rajouri-Shopian (Mughal Road) would serve as alternate arteries and connect two hilly wings to the two capital cities.

Referring to the 650-km Delhi-Katra express highway, Gadkari said the work had been distributed in different packages and already started on 16 packages in Punjab and Haryana. “After the completion of the Delhi-Katra express highway, the travel time between major cities, including Delhi-Amritsar, will be four hours, Delhi-Katra six hours and Delhi-Srinagar eight hours. This is my promise and it will be fulfilled,” he said.

The Union Minister said work was also under various stages of completion on the 1350-km long Delhi-Mumbai expressway which would reduce the travel time between India’s political and financial capitals from 24 hours to just 12 hours. It is estimated to be completed within the expenditure of Rs 90,000 crore. He said that Delhi-Chandigarh, Delhi-Dehradun, Delhi-Haridwar and Delhi-Jaipur Road journeys would be covered in just two hours.

As regards the four-lane highway between Jammu and Srinagar, Gadkari added that work was going on speedily on the last two packages. While 85 per cent of work had been completed on the 95-km long Jammu-Udhampur-Nashri section (which includes a 10-km long tunnel), the 60-km section between Nashri and Banihal would be completed by December 2023.

These projects, which are strategically important for the swift movement of defence forces along with the agricultural, industrial and socio-economic progress of the region, will provide all-weather connectivity between Jammu and Kashmir.

The projects will connect all major roads leading to various district headquarters and will help in the generation of employment and self-employment opportunities.

Making a significant announcement, the Minister said the road communication projects worth Rs 1,00,000 crore-equal to the total expenditure on 1350-km long 8-lane Delhi-Mumbai Expressway-would be executed in Jammu and Kashmir in the next two years. Tunnels to the tune of Rs 50,000 crore were already under execution in the UT.

Gadkari’s yet another remarkable announcement came about a road, including a tunnel under the Sadhna Top, between Kupwara and Tangdhar (LoC) and a road, including a tunnel from Bafliaz (Rajouri) to Peer Ki Gali near Shopian, Kashmir. Once completed, these two arteries would provide 24x7x365 connectivity through the two hilly terrains.

“Four things water, power, transport and communication are imperative for the success of tourism and industrialisation, which will help in elevating poverty, creating jobs and boosting economy,” the Minister said, adding that the Centre was making all-out efforts to bring development and prosperity to Jammu and Kashmir.

Referring to the development of roads in J&K, he said when the BJP came to power in 2014, the total length of roads in Jammu and Kashmir was 1,695 km, which was expanded to 2,664 km by 2021. J&K, he said, was the only part in the country where tunnels worth over Rs 50,000 crore were currently being constructed. These include Asia’s longest road tunnel near Zojila on Srinagar-Kargil-Leh highway.

“I assure you that the infrastructure will be at par with the western European standards during the Modi government,” Gadkari said about the roads under execution and in the pipeline.

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Conspiracy to make brother fight brother, foil the nefarious attempt of terrorists: Rahul Gandhi

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Srinagar, April 25: Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha and Congress MP Rahul Gandhi reached Srinagar on Friday. Here he met Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha. Along with this, Rahul Gandhi also met the injured and victims of the Pahalgam terror attack.

Regarding the Pahalgam terror attack, he said that whatever has happened, the idea behind it is to divide the society, there is a conspiracy to make brother fight brother. In such a situation, it is necessary that every Indian unites and foils the nefarious attempt of the terrorists.

Congress MP Rahul Gandhi, while addressing the media, said that this is a terrible tragedy. I have come here to know the situation and help. All the people of Jammu and Kashmir have condemned this terrible attack and they are with the nation. I have met one of the injured people. My love and affection is with all those who have lost their family members. I want to tell everyone that the whole nation stands with them. A day earlier on Thursday, we had a meeting with the government and the entire opposition condemned this attack.

He further said that along with this, we have given full support to any action taken by the government. The idea behind whatever has happened is to divide the society, there is a conspiracy to make brother fight brother. In such a situation, it is necessary that every Indian unites and thwarts the nefarious attempt of the terrorists. It is sad that some people are attacking our brothers and sisters in Kashmir and the rest of the country. We have to unite and defeat terrorism at this time. We have to stand united and together to fight this despicable act and defeat terrorism forever. I also met the Chief Minister and the Lieutenant Governor. They informed me about the incident. I have assured both of them that I and our party will fully support them.

During this, Rahul Gandhi met Congress leaders, workers and local people in Srinagar. He told the party leaders that the whole country is united against terrorism. We have to stay united, stand firm against hatred and terror.

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Waqf Act amended to prevent encroachment of government properties, Centre to SC

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New Delhi, Apr 25: The Centre, in an affidavit filed before the Supreme Court, said that it brought amendments to the Waqf Act, 1995, to prevent abuse of waqf legislation which resulted in the encroachment of government properties, apart from ensuring that the Waqf Boards in the country are properly administered and function with transparency.

“It is submitted that there have been reported misuse of waqf provisions to encroach private properties and government properties. It is really shocking to know that after the amendment brought in the year 2013, there is a 116 per cent rise in auqaf area,” said the preliminary affidavit filed by the Union Ministry of Minority Affairs.

The Centre, in its reply document filed before the top court, said that it was found that most of the Waqf Boards have been functioning in the “most non-transparent manner” and have either not uploaded the details in public domain or have uploaded partial details.

“In an era of transparency, it is absolutely necessary that all details concerning waqf/waqf boards be uploaded in Waqf Asset Management System of India (WAMPSI) portal,” it contended.

The Union government said that under the old regime, due to the absence of adequate safeguards, government properties and even private properties were declared as waqf properties.

“The provisions of Sections 3A, 3B and 3C take care of the said situation which has been prevailing since several decades. It is submitted that there are startling examples whereby the government lands or even the private lands were declared as waqf properties,” it said in the affidavit.

The Union government said that the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025, was passed with the objective of modernising the management of waqf properties in India through transparent, efficient and inclusive measures. It argued that the reforms introduced are directed solely at the secular and administrative aspects of waqf institutions – such as property management, record-keeping, and governance structures – without impinging upon any essential religious practices or tenets of the Islamic faith. The affidavit highlighted that despite there being a regime of mandatory registration of all kinds of waqf, including ‘waqf by user’, making registration mandatory, individuals or organisations used to claim private lands and government lands as waqf including under ‘waqf by user’ which not only lead to deprivation of valuable property rights of individual citizens but similarly unauthorised claims over public properties.

“While registration of all kinds of waqfs (including ‘Waqf by user’) has always been mandatory, the legal regime never required the waqf deed as a mandatory condition. In other words, it was mandatory to register ‘Waqf by user’ even in the absence of a waqf deed by giving other details for more than 100 years.”

Referring to the recently introduced Section 36(1A), the Centre said that the 2025 amendment provides that a waqf may now be established only through a valid deed of waqf. It clarified that the amendment to Section 36 has not interfered with the status of existing/registered auqaf by user, and any existing property which has been registered as waqf by user will retain its status.

The Union government said that a proviso has been inserted in Section 3 by the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025, making it clear that the mandatory requirement of a ‘waqf deed’ applies prospectively from the date of the 2025 amendment i.e., if any new waqf is created after April 8.

“Waqfs by user registered before the amendment would therefore continue to be treated as waqf in terms of the proviso,” the Centre said.

The preliminary reply document filed by the Union government said that before introducing the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025, there has been a detailed executive level and Parliamentary level exercise in order to understand the problems plaguing the previous statutory regime, the consequences, and the appropriate measures that were required to remedy the same.

The Centre contended that the “primary religious right being the right to make a dedication is not interfered with, and neither is the administration of any specific waqf interfered with as the same continues to be vested with the mutawalli as per the purpose behind such waqf”.

The affidavit said that it is a settled position in law that constitutional courts would not stay a statutory provision, either directly or indirectly, and will decide the matter finally, as there is a presumption of constitutionality that applies to laws made by Parliament.

“While the Hon’ble Court would undoubtedly have the power to examine the constitutionality of the law, at the interim stage, the grant of an injunction against the operation of any provision of the law, either directly or indirectly, would be violative of this presumption of constitutionality which is one of the facets of the delicate balance of power between the different branches of the State,” it added.

In the hearing held on April 17, a bench headed by CJI Sanjiv Khanna had granted a week’s time to the Centre and state governments and the Waqf Boards to file their preliminary reply to the petitions challenging the validity of the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025.

The Bench, also comprising Justices Sanjay Kumar and K.V. Viswanathan, had taken on record the assurance given by the Union government that it would not de-notify provisions related to ‘waqf by user’ or include non-Muslim members in the Waqf Board.

Posting the matter for further hearing on May 5, the CJI Khanna-led Bench clarified that the hearing fixed on the next date will be a preliminary hearing and, if required, interim orders will be passed.

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Pahalgam terror attack: Muslim community protests wearing black bands; demands strict action

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New Delhi, April 25: In a strong and unified expression of grief and condemnation, members of the Muslim community across India observed a solemn protest during Friday prayers, calling for decisive action against terrorism after the devastating terror attack in Pahalgam in Jammu and Kashmir, which left 26 people dead and many others injured.

Mosques across cities including Hyderabad, Delhi, Bhopal, Varanasi, and Lucknow witnessed a wave of solidarity as Muslim worshippers wore black bands on their arms as a mark of mourning and resistance against terrorism during the Juma Namaz (Friday prayers).

In Hyderabad, AIMIM Chief Asaduddin Owaisi distributed black bands among worshippers before offering Namaz at a mosque in Shastripuram. He condemned the attack and expressed solidarity with the victims’ families.

In the national Capital, AIMIM’s Delhi state president Dr Shoaib Jamai also led a peaceful protest during the Friday prayers.

“What happened in Pahalgam is extremely unfortunate for the country, and curse be upon the terrorists who carried out this heinous act,” Jamaai said, wearing a black band in protest.

In Bhopal, worshippers arrived at local mosques wearing black bands. “We will offer prayers while wearing black bands in protest against the Pahalgam attack,” said a youth from the community.

Another added, “If the government cannot punish a ruthless country like Pakistan, then open the borders, we, Hindus and Muslims together, will teach such a nation a lesson. We don’t even want to utter its name.”

In Varanasi, thousands gathered at the Jama Masjid in Nadesar, where prayers were offered for the souls of those who lost their lives in the attack. Similarly, in Lucknow, protests were held at the Asifi Masjid in the historic Imambara, where worshippers raised slogans against terrorism and Pakistan.

Worshippers across all these cities also prayed for peace and harmony in the country. “We prayed for the souls of those killed in Kashmir and for peace to prevail in our nation,” said one of the attendees.

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